DAILY GK UPDATE: 12TH JANUARY

1.Nation celebrates 150th birth anniversary of Swami Vivekananda:
i.The nation is celebrating Swami Vivekananda's 150th birth anniversary, the day which is also observed as National Youth Day.

ii. Remembering Swami Vivekananda on Saturday, various functions are being held at Belur Math, the headquarters of Ramakrishna Mission and at Swamiji's ancestral home in Kolkata.
iii. At Rashtrapati Bhawan President Pranab Mukherjee will inaugurate the anniversary celebrations in the presence of Congress President Sonia Gandhi and several Union Ministers.
iv. A set of commemorative coins and commemorative stamps on Swami Vivekananda will be released on the occasion.
This bright star of Indian history passed away at a young age on 4th July, 1902.
2.Money Laundering and Banking Bills 2012 turned into Law:
The President of India Pranab Mukherjee gave his assent to the Prevention of Money Laundering (Amendment) Bill, the Enforcement of Security Interest and Recovery of Debts Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2012 and Banking Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2012 to make it a law of the land.
i. To strengthen the provisions of bad debts by the financial institutions and banks the Enforcement of Security Interest and Recovery of Debts Laws (Amendment) Bill 2012 was passed.
ii. Banking Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2012 would be shaping the way ahead to corporate houses to enter the field of Banking this is one of the key reform legislation.
iii. The Parliament in its winter session approved the Prevention of Money Laundering (Amendment) Bill 2012that needed to enlarge its definition of money laundering offences so that it can curb the practice of funding the terrorists operations.
iv. The Bill sought removal of 5 lakh rupees as fine in existence under the act and proposed a provision of taking away of the profits of the crime even under situation, where the conviction was not proved but the offence of money laundering happened and the property in question that is involved in the offence.
v. The Bill was passed by the Lok Sabha during the winter session on 29 November 2012.
3. Postage Stamp on Silk Letter Movement released by President:
The President of India, Pranab Mukherjee on 11 January 2013 released a Commemorative Postage Stamp on Silk Letter Movement at Vigyan Bhawan, New Delhi.
The Silk Letter Movement:
The Silk Letter Movement refers to the golden history of India’s freedom struggle in which, the Deobandi leaders tried to generate a pan-Islamic revolt in British-India against the British Empire by gaining support of Afghanistan and Turkey Governments. Obaidullah Sindhui and Maulana Mahmood Hasan were the two main leaders of the movement.
4. Women members appointed for first time in Shura Council in Saudi Arabia:
i. In Saudi Arabia, women members have been appointed for the first time in the Shura Council which is the top consultative body in the Government. All members are appointed by the king and serve four-year terms.
ii. The Saudi King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz has named 30 female members in the 150 member advisory body. The decision has been welcomed by the women activists who said a lot still remains to be done to improve the status of women in Saudi Arabia.
iii. The Saudi move follows a royal decree issued by the King which stipulates that at least 20 per cent of members in the council should be women.
NOTE: i. The royal decree says that the women must observe Islamic law and be properly covered, and will enjoy full rights in the council, have a separate entrance to the chamber and sit in a special section apart from men.
ii. In September 2011,the king granted women the right to vote and run in the 2015 municipal elections.
iii. Saudi Arabia for the first time allowed its women athletes to participate in the Olympics last year.
iv. The Kingdom remains the only country where women are not allowed to drive themselves as driving licenses are not issued to them. They have to be accompanied by a male guardian while moving out in public life.
5. UP Govt to bear education expenses of gangrape victim's brothers:
i. Uttar Pradesh government will bear all educational expenses of the two brothers of the 23-year old Delhi gangrape victim.
ii. The government took the decision after Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav visited the girl's native Medawar Kala village yesterday to meet her family, district magistrate A B Chandramauli said here today.
iii. During the visit, the Chief minister gave a cheque of Rs 20 lakh to the parents of the girl and assured them all possible help from the state government.
iv. He also asked the district authorities to ensure development of the village which has been selected under the "Lohia Samagra Gram Yojna" this year.
6. Simon Taufel – The First Umpire to deliver the MCC Spirit of Cricket Cowdrey Lecture 2013:
i. Simon Taufel, the umpire who has been the five-time ICC Umpire of the Year from 2004 to 2008 would be the first umpire to deliver the prestigious MCC Spirit of Cricket Cowdrey Lecture that would take place on 24 July 2013.
ii. This announcement was made by the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) on 11 January 2013.
iii. The lecture of 2013 would be the 13th lecture, ever since its inception and Taufel would be the third Australian after Adam Gilchrist (2009) and Richie Benaud (2001 – the first lecture) to deliver this lecture.
About MCC Spirit of Cricket Cowdrey Lecture:
MCC Spirit of Cricket Cowdrey Lecture first began in the year 2001 in the memory of the former Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) president Colin Cowdrey.
He played an important role in enshrinement of the Spirit of Cricket in the preamble of the Code of the Laws of Cricket in the year 2000.
7. Santosh Trophy from February 1:
i. The 67th Santosh Trophy National football championship kicks off in Lucknow and Varanasi in Uttar Pradesh on February 1 and ends with the final in Kochi on March 3.
ii. The championship’s qualifying phase has been divided into two rounds, with the stronger teams bunched in qualifying round I and the other teams in qualifying round II.
iii. Two teams from each of the four qualifying round I groups will progress to the quarterfinal league while only one from each group will make the grade from qualifying round II.
NOTE: Defending champion Services, last year’s runner-up Tamil Nadu and the semifinalists, Kerala and Manipur, have been given a direct berth into the quarterfinal round.
8. AITA to appoint special committee to address players' concern:
i. The All India Tennis Association (AITA) on Saturday decided to appoint a special committee, likely to be headed by a retired judge, to address the demands made by revolting players.
ii. The proposal to appoint the committee was made by AITA President Anil Khanna. It will be formed on 3rd February when the national federation proposes to have its next Executive Committee meeting.
iii. The committee will be headed either by a retired judge or a senior retired government officer of equal status and an eminent tennis player.
iv. It will go into the matters relating to Davis Cup and arrive at a suitable agreement with the players for Davis Cup matches.
NOTE: A total of 11 players, including Somdev Devvarman, made themselves unavailable for the upcoming South Korea tie unless the AITA fulfill their demands with regards to playing conditions.
9. David Ferrer wins Heineken Open for 4th time:
World No. 5 and top seed David Ferrer beat second—seeded Philipp Kohlschreiber 7—6 (5), 6—1 on Saturday to win the Heineken Open title for the third—straight year and fourth time overall.
NOTE: The win gave Ferrer the 19th singles title of his career and his eighth in the past 12 months. His win in Auckland last January gave him the first of seven singles titles he won in eight finals appearances in 2012.
10. England beat India by nine runs in the Rajkot one-dayer:
England defeated India by 9 runs in the first one day international cricket match at Rajkot yesterday, to lead the 5-match series, one nil.
i. Chasing a stiff target of 326, India lacked the batting firepower and were restricted to a 316 for nine in a high-scoring contest to concede a 1-0 lead to visitors in the five-match series..
ii. Opting to bat first, England rode on a record 158-run opening stand between captain Alastair Cook (75) and in-form Ian Bell (85) to post an imposing 325 for four on a batting paradise at the newly built Saurashtra Cricket Association Stadium.
iii. Ian Bell top scored with a brilliant 85, while Skipper Alistair Cook made 75. For India, Pacer Ashok Dinda bagged two wickets.
iv. In reply, India managed to make 316 for 9 in 50 overs.
vi. The second ODI will be played at Kochi on 15th Jan,Tuesday.